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Mathematics & Further Mathematics A Level

close up of math sums and a pen
Getting Ahead

Mathematics & Further Mathematics A Level at Alton Campus

Hello! Here is a selection of tasks you should do, between now and the start of term, to help prepare for your A Level Maths or Further Maths course.

We have put together the following Getting Ahead work to help you prep for your course in September.

We look forward to you starting College with us soon.

two students working together with a calculator

The A Level Maths course is split up into three main components: Pure Maths (Mainly Algebra-based topics) which accounts for 2/3 of the content, Statistics (Data and Probability) and Mechanics (Physics-based topics such as Velocity and Forces), both taking up 1/6 of the content.

Maths is a challenging subject at A Level that requires good problem-solving skills as well as commitment and resilience. Lots of students say there is a big step up from GCSE to A Level in Maths and we want you to be prepared as best as possible. Some of the work set will be difficult and take time, however we find those students who work hard at it and ask questions often do the best.

Maths can also be really rewarding and enjoyable when you have spent a long time working on a problem and you finally get to the correct solution.

Activity Summary
We would like you to complete these FOUR topic questions, to reinforce concepts learned in GCSE maths that will be essential for A-Level Mathematics:

  1. Expanding brackets and simplifying expressions
  2. Factorising expressions
  3. Surds and rationalising the denominator
  4. Completing the square

You are welcome to use Revision Guides or Videos online to help you solve and understand some of the problems.

Please complete all the questions on separate paper and check your answers against the solutions provided. You don’t have to do it all in one go as we are expecting it to take a few hours to do.

Try and have a go at all the questions, remember some of these are difficult and we don’t expect everyone to get them all right. Also, be aware that these are the types of question you will be getting as part of the A Level Maths course. We will be revisiting some of these topics again from September, as we then move quickly onto the new A Level content.

QUESTIONS
Expanding Brackets & Simplifying Expressions Questions
Factorising Expressions Questions
Surds and Rationalising the Denominator Questions
Completing the Square Questions
SOLUTIONS
Expanding Brackets & Simplifying Expressions Answers
Factorising Expressions Answers
Surds and Rationalising the Denominator Answers
Completing the Square Answers

Coming soon…

Click here for some higher level work. This resource is a complete Higher Maths revision course. It includes a 10-hour video that covers all the key Higher Tier topics, along with practice questions, answers, and revision checklists. Tackle it a bit at a time!

Resources

Meet your Teachers

  • Andrea Wingfield

We look forward to seeing you soon!

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My time at the college was definitely life changing, I have learnt a lot of new skills, and obviously it’s a completely new experience. The support was great, there was always people there to help and try make it as easy as they can for you. The college is really fantastic, it has helped me on the way to get to what I want to achieve within my career goals.

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The tutors were really supportive and it was all thanks to them that I have achieved what I have. I’ve also made loads of great friends and really enjoyed my time at the college.

Lizaveta Sinkerich, A Level student